Best Worst Day Ever
by DemiDoots
Summary: Iwaizumi looked down at the girl who had her back pressed against the wall. She was small enough for him to wonder if she was even in high school, but she was wearing what looked like the typical manager's uniform and had two full water bottle carriers in her hands. Iwaizumi tried not to sound as harsh as when he'd spoken to the players as he asked, "Are these guys bothering you?"
1. Chapter 1

"Damn it, Oikawa. Where'd you go?"

Tracking down his setter wasn't Iwaizumi's favorite part of his vice-captain job description, but it was still something he found himself doing often enough. Besides, if he didn't do it, nobody else on the team would. Really though, how long did it take to get some water? Iwaizumi just hoped that a group of his fangirls hadn't gotten a hold of him, because he did _not_ have time to search the entire gym complex. They were supposed to start warming up for their game soon.

Iwaizumi gave out the occasional distracted "'scuse me" as he moved through the crowds of people, peering over heads in search of that dumb cowlick that Oikawa insisted was intentionally styled. He was so distracted by looking for Oikawa and thinking about what he'd do to his captain once he actually found him that he almost missed it. A small voice, one he probably wouldn't have heard over the other many voices around him if he hadn't been passing so close by.

"I can't," the voice shook with obvious nerves. "I have to get back to my team. They're expecting me."

Off to the side of the hall, Iwaizumi could see that two players had a girl backed up and basically cornered against a wall. He tried to place the school that the green jackets belonged to, but was drawing a blank. All he could remember was that they never seemed to make it past the first round or two at regional tournaments. But Iwaizumi frowned when he saw the girl they'd cornered try to step away only to have her path blocked again. Oikawa would be fine on his own for another few minutes while he took care of this.

"Hey!" The way he barked out the word made one of the players flinch before they both turned to look at him. Putting on his best stern vice-captain look, Iwaizumi asked, "What do you think you're doing?"

The guy that had flinched had the good sense to look willing to give up and leave, but the other and taller of the two made it a point look down at Iwaizumi as he said, "We're just talking. Isn't that right?"

Iwaizumi looked down at the girl who had her back pressed against the wall. She was small enough for him to wonder if she was even in high school, but she was wearing what looked like the typical manager's uniform and had two full water bottle carriers in her hands. Iwaizumi tried not to sound as harsh as when he'd spoken to the players as he asked, "Are these guys bothering you?"

Yachi had no idea what to do. She was just trying to help the team by filling up their water bottles. Now she was trapped in the hall by giants who were saying nice things with scary smiles. What did they want with her? Were they going to kidnap her? Sell her into some human trafficking ring? She couldn't be sold! She had to get the water bottles back to the team! Words were hard to find and her tongue refused to work the way she wanted it to whenever the giants asked her questions about what school she was with and how old she was and if she was really a manager. Her breath was coming so quickly that she was starting to get a little lightheaded when another voice caught the attention of the two who had her cornered.

She watched the exchange between the three boys wide-eyed and doing her best not to let her legs shake too much. But when the boy who'd come to question the other two looked directly at her and asked her something, Yachi could hear the bottles shake in their carries as her hands began to tremble at her sides. 'Scary,' she thought. 'Wait, he asked me something! What did he ask me?!'

Iwaizumi watched the little manager girl practically shake in her sneakers as she blinked up at him rapidly and opened her mouth only to have a few choked squeaks come out to answer him. Maybe his gentle approach could use some work after all. Sighing as he reached up to rub a hand against the back of his head, Iwaizumi looked back at the two players who were now much more focused on him than the girl and said, "Look, she's obviously busy doing stuff for her team. Leave her alone and go hit on girls who don't look ready to bolt."

The taller player looked like he was getting ready to talk back when his friend shoved him in the shoulder and whispered less-than-subtly, "Dude, look at his jacket. Seijou."

The little smirk Iwaizumi allowed to slip onto his face was one hundred percent team pride and had absolutely no sadistic undertones. Nope. Not at all. And when the two players finally walked away with a huff and a few grumbles that Iwaizumi decided to ignore, he definitely did not have to repress the urge to laugh at the effect his school's powerhouse reputation could have. Once the two were a fair distance down the hall, he looked back at the little manager who still seemed to be frozen in place.

"You okay?" Iwaizumi asked. Honestly, she looked a little pale. When she only continued to stare at him without saying a word, Iwaizumi genuinely began to wonder if the guys he'd run off had hurt her. "Hey, are you alright?"

Finally snapping back into the moment, Yachi took a deep breath and bowed quickly as she answered, "Y-yes! I'm fine! Th-thank you very much!"

Iwaizumi drew back a little as he was suddenly being yelled at very politely and looked around to see that several people had stopped to stare. "Yeah," he told her even as his cheeks warmed at all of the looks they were getting. "Just be careful walking alone around here, yeah?"

Yachi looked up at the volleyball player who had saved her and nodded her head seriously, "Yes!"

"Hitoka-chan," a soft voice called from down the hall to catch their attention. "Are you finished filling the bottles?"

Iwaizumi and Yachi both turned to look at the newcomer and both blushed at the pretty girl approaching them.

"Is everything okay?" Kiyoko asked looking between Yachi and Iwaizumi. She knew firsthand how boys could get at these tournaments.

"Everything's fine!" Yachi answered happily before holding up her full carriers. "And I got all of the water."

"Good," Kiyoko smiled down at her first year manager-in-training before turning and motioning for her to follow. "The team is warming up now, so we need to get back."

Yachi nodded enthusiastically and took a few steps to follow after her upperclassman before she stopped, turned, and nodded in thanks to Iwaizumi one more time, this time with a smile that wasn't tense with nerves. Not completely, at least.

It was only when the girls were walking away that Iwaizumi got to read what was on the back of their matching black jackets. 'Oh,' he thought.

Karasuno High School Volleyball Club

They were set to play Karasuno next, and if their warmups had already started, that meant he needed to find Oikawa and get back to their team _fast_.

* * *

There really wasn't any nice way to put it. Iwaizumi felt like shit.

Losing was always hard. It always sucked. But it didn't usually leave him feeling this utterly defeated, this bitter. Maybe it was because he felt responsible. Maybe it was because this had been it, their last chance at nationals in high school, and now it was over. Iwaizumi really didn't give a damn about _why_ he felt this way, only that he _did_ and he wanted it to _stop_.

"Okay, everyone," Oikawa called in that fake cheery voice that usually irritated Iwaizumi but now it just made him feel sick. Because no matter how chipper he tried to sound, you didn't need to have known him for years like Iwaizumi had to hear how tired and disappointed he really was. It didn't take being hyper-observant to notice the red rimming his eyes even as he forced that gross smile. "Let's get back to the school so that we can have a meeting about the game, and then you can all get home for some rest!"

The rest of the team agreed with lackluster enthusiasm as they gathered up their bags and made their way towards the bus that would take them back to school. As Iwaizumi grabbed up his bag and Oikawa's, he felt two hands clap him on the back and didn't need to look up to know that it was Hanamaki and Matsukawa. He didn't want to look at them right now. He had to tighten his jaw and his grip on the bag straps just to keep the tight ball of emotion in his chest firmly where it was. He wasn't going to cry again. Not in front of the team. He'd save that for later when he was at home. Maybe have another bout of it when he barged in on Oikawa later to make sure his best friend didn't wallow too much.

Because this was it. The end of their high school volleyball careers, the end of their time together as a team. He, Oikawa, Matsukawa, and Hanamaki had played on the same team for years, but now most of them would be going to different universities. If they all kept playing through college and ever met on the court again, it would likely be as opponents. And sure, that might be fun and new at some point in the future, but it wasn't what he wanted right now.

They were almost to their bus when the doors to the gymnasium opened with an amount of cheering that had him twisting his bag strap with renewed force. He knew it was Karasuno before he even looked. Part of him wanted to be angry that they were so happy when he felt so shitty - and part of him kind of was - but he couldn't begrudge them too much. They'd won after a hell of a game.

But when he caught the eye of the little manager that he'd helped and she was smiling so bright and genuine, Iwaizumi still couldn't find it in himself to smile back, couldn't even fake it. And when her smile fell just the slightest and he realized that it was because of him, he actually groaned and kicked himself all the way to his seat next to Oikawa.

Great. One more thing to beat himself up about.


	2. Chapter 2

One week, more or less. A week since their loss, which was only softened by Shiratorizawa's loss the next day. A week since he'd retired from the volleyball team. A week since he'd thrown himself into studying for university entrance exams. A week for Iwaizumi to realize just how much of his free time volleyball had occupied.

"What the hell is the difference?" Iwaizumi muttered as he squinted at two of the many bottles of rice vinegar in front of him.

For years, Iwaizumi's time had been pretty well taken up between classes, volleyball, studying, eating, and sleeping. His only real down time had been the weekly off days from practice. But now every day was an off day and Iwaizumi was going a little stir crazy. He could really only study so much before his eyes felt like they were going to fall out. It might not have been so bad if he'd had Oikawa to keep him company more, but his friend had started volunteering at Takeru's Lil Tykes classes more often with all of their newly found free time.

It seemed that lying on the couch and staring at the same page of notes for an hour had been the last straw for Iwaizumi's mother though. Thus, in an effort to get him out of the house for at least a little while, she'd sent him out with the grocery list, some money, and a happy call of "no rush" as he walked out the door. It was a good thing she hadn't urgently needed anything on the list, he thought. He'd been staring at the stupid rice vinegar selection for at least five solid minutes trying to remember which brand his mom bought. And that was when he wasn't getting distracted by what could possibly make one brand cost twenty yen more than another when they looked like the _exact same thing_.

'Screw it,' he thought with a shrug as he grabbed a bottle in the middle of the price range that the _thought_ looked at leave vaguely familiar. Worst case scenario, his mom would send him back to the store and he'd kill a little more time.

Snacks weren't officially on the list, but that didn't stop Iwaizumi from taking a detour down the junk aisle. Chips, candy, cookies, things his mother would generally disapprove of. Pulling out his wallet, Iwaizumi counted how much of his own money he had on him before grabbing two bags of chips and a package of some sort of fudge cookies he was sure he'd regret eating later. With a nod of satisfaction, he started up the aisle again only to stop in his tracks a second later.

Iwaizumi had to stop and watch the scene playing out in front of him. Of all people, there was Karasuno's little manager at the end of the aisle, up on her tip-toes and stretching as far as she was able to get something off of the top shelf. When she finally set down her shopping basket so that she could jump for what she wanted, Iwaizumi bit back a grin and started towards her again.

Yachi hopped as high as she could without risking bumping the other shelves and still couldn't quite reach the bag she wanted. Why did they have to put things up so high anyway? She really didn't want to bother an employee just to help her get a snack. What if they got annoyed and banned her from the store? Or worse, what if they banned anyone short? She didn't think she could live with the guilt of forcing an entire group of people to find a new grocery store.

She almost had it, she was _sure_ of it, but before she could jump again, a hand reached over her and easily grabbed the bag that her fingers had brushed on her last two jumps. Worried at first that she'd been in the way of someone else who wanted the cinnamon-sugar rice cakes, Yachi was ready with an apology until the bag was lowered down into her hands.

"That's what you wanted, right?" Iwaizumi asked. When the little manager turned to look at him with wide brown eyes and a few stuttered syllables, he started to think that maybe she was always this nervous. That or it was him that made her nervous. He'd always been told that he had a serious face, but it wasn't like he went out of his way to be intimidating. So, in an effort to put the girl at ease, he tried a small smile.

Not quite able to get her words together, Yachi nodded to answer what her two-time rescuer had asked her. But then he smiled and that caught her more off guard than the scowl she'd gotten used to seeing on him during their few interactions. Before she knew it, Yachi felt a smile starting to pull at her mouth too. How could someone who seemed so scary have such an infectious grin?

"Need anything else?" Iwaizumi pointed towards the higher shelves, willing to stick around and help if she wasn't finished.

Yachi shook her head as she put her bag of snacks in her shopping basket. "No, but thank you," she said with a polite nod.

"Sure thing." Iwaizumi was content to leave it at that and go back to his own shopping, but he paused as he was about to round the corner and leave the aisle. "Oh, and uh, congratulations. You know, on winning and going to nationals."

Yachi's mouth drew into a small line as she looked down at the tiled floor. She knew that she should say thank you, but it felt too awkward. It felt too much like rubbing defeat in this guy's face. She didn't even know his name and he scared her a little, but he didn't seem like a bad or mean person. Settling for a hum and a nod, Yachi looked back up to make eye contact for just a moment before her eyes skittered off to the side again. In a small voice, she told him, "Thank you, and...um, sorry about your loss."

"Yeah," Iwaizumi said with a small sigh and an even smaller smile that he actually managed to force this time. "Thanks. See ya around." A small wave and he was gone around the corner, kicking himself for opening his mouth and making a perfectly normal encounter awkward.

It didn't take long to pick out the last couple of items on his mother's list since they were things he actually recognized from around the kitchen. Shopping really hadn't sounded that exciting when the chore had been handed down to him, and while it wasn't exactly _exciting_ , he had to admit that it was nice to get out of the house. He definitely needed to find new things to do with all of this free time he now had. Heading towards the checkout counter, he wondered if it would be worth it to ask Oikawa about him tagging along to the Lil Tykes classes.

The checkout line was fairly long by the time he fell in place at the back, but he actually let a laugh slip when he looked down and saw who was in front of him. Once again, Karasuno's manager turned around to look up at him, looking just as surprised as he'd been. Glancing over her head at how many people were in front of them, Iwaizumi looked back down and decided that he had enough time. "You know, I've been wondering," he said to grab her attention again. "I don't remember seeing you with Karasuno before the Spring High prelims."

Yachi's grip on her basket handles tightened as she stood up a little straighter. How formal did she need to be? He seemed relaxed speaking to her, but he was older. The didn't go to the same school though, so he wasn't technically her senpai or anything. Would talking to him be considered fraternizing with the enemy? Even if they weren't going to play Seijou again this year?

"Um," Yachi stalled as she tried to sort through her thoughts and catch up to what he'd said. The line moved forward a little and she took a few steps before turning back to answer with a slightly clearer head. "No, I didn't...I didn't join until after the Interhigh preliminaries. I think."

Iwaizumi hummed in response. Well, that would explain why he'd never noticed her around before that day in the hall. "I'm Iwaizumi, by the way," he introduced himself. "Iwaizumi Hajime. Since we keep running into each other."

"Oh! Yes, it's nice to meet you! I'm Yachi Hitoka."

Yachi's attention was drawn away when the line moved forward another couple of steps, and Iwaizumi looked at the people around them in line before looking back down at his newest acquaintance. Without giving his more rational side a chance to think things through or object, his mouth opened to blurt out, "Would you, ah, would you want to get something to eat sometime? With me?"

When Yachi looked back at him with that same wide-eyed look that she seemed to give him more often than not, Iwaizumi felt his face start to burn. Great. A strange guy she doesn't actually know hitting on her in a very public place. She probably didn't think he was much different from the guys he ran off before. He wasn't even completely sure why he asked. Yeah, he thought Yachi was cute, even if she seemed a little high strung, and now that volleyball wasn't consuming most of his time, he actually had time to do things like date. But why _now_? Maybe because he had no idea when or where he'd run into her again. Yeah, he'd just go with that for now.

"You don't have to say yes if you don't want to," Iwaizumi rushed to reassure her. She usually seemed skittish around him at best, and the last thing he wanted to was to make her feel like she had to accept his offer.

For once, Yachi drew a complete blank. No over-analyzing what Iwaizumi had asked. No thoughts of kidnappers or weird pranks or a dying man's last wish to get married and make his parents happy-though that would explain a lot. Instead, Yachi's mind was just her brain's version of static as she stared up at Iwaizumi trying to figure out if he was serious or not. It wasn't until the man behind Iwaizumi cleared his throat that Yachi realized the line had moved again and she quickly scooted forward.

"I…" She didn't want to wait _too_ long to answer him. She'd never asked anyone out before, but she couldn't imagine that a long stunned silence was very comforting to hear. Still though, she had absolutely no idea what to say. "I...don't know."

Iwaizumi sighed, just relieved that she'd finally said something that wasn't a terrified yes. "Don't worry about it," he tried to smile down at her, despite the awkwardness of being shot down, even on an unplanned offer. "You don't actually know me and this is a little weird. I get it."

"No," Yachi started before backtracking. "I-I mean, yes! I...It is a little weird and we don't know each other. We just met. But I, but I also have practice with the volleyball club. I don't know...when...or if...I could...say...yes."

What. Was. She. Saying? She didn't know this person! Not really. He could be a teenage ax murderer for all she knew. But still, possible ax murdering aside, he'd been nothing but helpful to her in their very few meetings. He _seemed_ like a nice enough guy. And she wasn't actually saying yes to him. Not right now anyway. It was more of a maybe. A tentative maybe.

"Oh." It was Iwaizumi's turn to be surprised this time. He honestly hadn't expected that turnaround. "Well," he tried to get his brain back in gear to catch up with what was happening now. "If you're interested and don't know when you're free or want to talk first or something, we could exchange numbers?"

"Next," the cashier called out and broke the moment between the distracted teens.

Yachi quickly set her basket on the counter with a string of apologies before turning back to keep glancing between Iwaizumi and her purse as she fumbled for her wallet. "I...that sounds...yes! That's, that sounds good. Let's do that."

Once Yachi got all of her groceries bagged and paid for, she stood to the side and waited for Iwaizumi to pay for his mother's groceries and then separately for his own snacks. They walked out of the store together and stood out front as they each pulled out their phones. It didn't take long to send each other their contact information via infrared, and once they made sure that everything was correct and saved, they went their separate ways.

Yachi was glad for once that her mom was working late so that she wouldn't be questioned about her extra nervous behavior or the blush that would randomly creep back up to her cheeks. Iwaizumi wasn't quite so lucky and had to reassure his mother several times that he was _not_ coming down with a fever.


	3. Chapter 3

It wasn't unusual for Yachi to let Hinata and Kageyama copy her notes for upcoming tests during lunch. The duo took their own notes during class, but hers were usually more detailed and helped them fill in any gaps that they'd missed.

What was unusual was for her phone to go off in the middle of the school day. It was on vibrate, barely audible from where it sat in her bag, but it was still surprising enough for her to almost drop her juice box. Looking up at the two volleyball players who were pointing at her notes and bickering about which points were most important, Yachi realized that they had been too preoccupied and hadn't even noticed the buzzing sound.

It didn't take much fishing before Yachi was pulling her phone free and checking to see that she had a new message.

 _[From: Iwaizumi_ _Hajime]_  
 _Are you on lunch break?_

This time, Yachi did fumble as her juice slipped from her hand.

* * *

Iwaizumi yawned as he tipped his chair onto its back legs and hooked a foot under the seat Hanamaki currently occupied to keep his balance. The volleyball third years had gathered in his classroom for lunch since it was getting too cold to eat on the roof or anywhere else outside.

Hanamaki was quizzing Matsukawa on his English since he had a test after lunch, and Oikawa was fiddling with his phone before he frowned. Extending his left arm without looking up from his own phone, Oikawa made a grabby hand as he said, "Iwa-chan, let me see your phone."

Iwaizumi set his chair fully on the floor, slipped his phone out of his pants pocket without much thought, and was already handing it over before he bothered to ask, "Why?"

"I want to compare some differences."

"What differences?" Iwaizumi asked as he tilted his chair back again. "We have the same phone."

"I know, but you always put off your updates," Oikawa explained like it should have been obvious what he was doing. "I got the OS upgrade last night, and I'm not sure that I like it. I just want to see how different things are between the new and old versions."

"Are you going to Lil Tykes today?"

Oikawa nodded without looking up from where he was tapping and swiping at both phone screens. "You're not invited."

Iwaizumi pouted but tried to cover it with a frown. "They don't like me better," he muttered.

"Yes they do!" Oikawa accused as he finally looked up from the phones. "Whenever you go with me everything is all "Iwaizumi-san" this and "Iwaizumi-san" that and "Iwaizumi-san is so cool!"" Oikawa imitated the kids he coached in a horrible squeaky voice. "It's annoying," he sighed dramatically before going back to comparing the two phones. "I don't have the heart to tell them how incredibly wrong they are."

Iwaizumi made a face at his best friend before he heard Matsukawa butcher a passage he was reading almost beyond recognition. "Did you even study for this test at all?" He laughed.

Matsukawa just shrugged as he tilted one hand back and forth as if to say so-so. Iwaizumi was about to lecture his former teammate when a noise from Oikawa caught his attention. It was a light hum, curious with a little lilt at the end to imply some unspoken question. "What is it?" Iwaizumi asked, already cautious about the look on Oikawa's face.

"Iwa-chan," Oikawa spoke slowly as he picked up Iwaizumi's phone from where it had been lying on the desk and turned it so that Iwaizumi could see the screen. Iwaizumi's face got warm as soon as he saw what Oikawa had found, before Oikawa even asked, "Who is Yachi Hitoka?"

"Ah, well," Iwaizumi started as he looked to the side and scratched his cheek. Looking back to Oikawa, he saw that his friend's complete and undivided attention was on him as he waited for an answer. With a sigh, Iwaizumi said, "She's a manager at Karasuno."

"The one with the glasses?" Oikawa asked with more than a little incredulity coloring his voice.

"No, the other one," Iwaizumi shook his head. "Short, blonde, always seems a little nervous. She's a first year."

"Mmhmm," Oikawa gave him a long look before prodding further. "And why do you have her number?"

Trying to sound as casual as he possibly could despite the awkward tension making his chest feel tight, Iwaizumi answered, "I asked her out to get something to eat."

At this point, Iwaizumi and Oikawa jumped when the book Matsukawa and Hanamaki had been going over snapped shut and the other two turned in their seats to have their full attention on the conversation happening beside them.

"Don't mind us," Hanamaki waved the two of them on. "Please continue."

Oikawa looked between Iwaizumi and the contact entry before asking, "And when this happen?"

Thinking back, Iwaizumi said, "A few days ago? Mom sent me to the grocery store and I ran into there."

"I swear," Oikawa sighed. "It's like pulling teeth with you, Iwa-chan. Are you going to tell me what happened or not? What did you say? What was her answer? As your best friend, I demand the details."

"It wasn't anything big or dramatic," Iwaizumi hedged as three sets of eyes focused on him. "I helped her get something from a top shelf, we were next to each other in the checkout line, and I asked her out."

"What. Did. She. _Say_?" Oikawa pressed.

"I don't know!" Iwaizumi said frustrated as he ruffled a hand through his hair. "It wasn't an outright no, but it wasn't really a yes, either. Just that we don't really know each other, and she's still busy with Karasuno's practices, so she doesn't know when she'd have the time."

Oikawa hummed in understanding as he nodded and gave Iwaizumi a considering look. Looking down at the phone again, he asked, "And this happened a few days ago?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, we'll come back to you not telling your very best childhood friend about this later," Oikawa warned. "But for now, you haven't sent her any texts or emails? Haven't called?"

"No?" Iwaizumi wasn't sure he liked Oikawa's tone.

"And you haven't heard from her?"

"No."

"Hmm, okay," Oikawa said as he glanced up at the ceiling. He tapped Iwaizumi's phone against his chin as his mouth twisted to the side in thought. Suddenly, a grin split his face and he pulled Iwaizumi's phone back to start tapping at the screen.

"Hey, Oikawa, what are you-" Iwaizumi's eyes went wide when realization hit him and he almost fell backwards in his chair. "Shit!" He swore as he regained his balance, quickly leaned forward, and lunged for his phone as soon as his feet were back on the ground. "Oikawa, don't!"

"Calm down, Iwa-chan," Oikawa chided, twisting in his seat and extending the phone far out of Iwaizumi's reach. "I'm just giving you the benefit of my experience with girls and pushing you in the right direction."

Hanamaki laughed from where he sat watching the spectacle Iwaizumi and Oikawa were making of themselves. Chiming in, Matsukawa said, "Are you really the best person to give dating advice? Your last girlfriend dumped you because you were basically two-timing her with volleyball."

"Rude!" Oikawa put on his best affronted pout. "Just because I have one hundred percent to the team and she couldn't understand that, doesn't mean that I'm not experienced. Pray tell, when was the last time either of you went on a date?"

"Oikawa, give me the damn phone!" Iwaizumi all but shouted as he rounded the desk only for Oikawa to stand and keep his phone out of reach.

"Iwa-chan, stop it," Oikawa smiled as he had to backspace several characters and try his message again. "You're going to make me mess up and you're the one that's going to end up looking like an idiot because of it."

"The way you text, I'm going to look like an idiot anyway!" Iwaizumi growled as he ducked the arm Oikawa had been using to keep him back. He knew that they were attracting a small audience of giggling classmates, but this really wasn't anything they hadn't seen before. Oikawa was usually doing something to irritate Iwaizumi and things got physical in some way or another more often than not.

"I can't believe you have so little faith in me," Oikawa pouted before hitting send and finally handing Iwaizumi back his phone. "See? I've known you forever, Iwa-chan. I know how you text by now. Boring, succinct, and usually in complete sentences. You text like my dad."

Iwaizumi gaped down at the message in his outbox. "Are you serious?" He asked, holding up his phone. "What kind of question is that? _Are you on lunch break?_ "

Sitting back down in his seat, Oikawa explained, "It's been a few days since you got her number, so you don't look desperate reaching out now. And it's a casual question with an easy answer, so it won't put a lot of pressure on her to think out just the right answer." At Iwaizumi's stunned silence, Oikawa's smile turned smug. "You see, this is where you say "Oh, thank you, Oikawa-san! You're the best friend someone like me could have." Ow!"

After smacking Oikawa in the back of the head, Iwaizumi took his seat again and laid his phone down on the desk. "That was for stealing my phone, you dick. And expect more if this little message of yours backfires."

The quiet between them was tense as Oikawa pouted and they all waited for some sort of response. It came sooner than Iwaizumi would have expected, and he almost didn't want to check what it said. But with his three friends looking at him expectantly, Iwaizumi decided that he might as well get it over with. After all, it wasn't like the message was going to disappear by sheer force of will.

 _[From: Yachi Hitoka]  
yes but class is starting again soon. u?_ -✲ﾟ｡.(✿╹◡╹)ﾉ .｡₀:*ﾟ✲ﾟ*:₀｡

Iwaizumi stared down at the message even as Oikawa used one finger to tilt the phone back so that he could see it as well.

"Iwa-chan," he said seriously. "I don't know this girl, but she uses cute emoticons with stars and sparkles in her signature. She is too cute for you."

"Shut up, Trashykawa," Iwaizumi told him without any real bite, though he did kick at Oikawa from under his desk.

The first bell to signal the end of lunch rang as Iwaizumi was typing out his response. His friends straightened up where they'd been sitting and grabbed what was left of their lunches before heading towards the door to return to their own classrooms. But as he passed by, Oikawa paused and leaned down to sing over Iwaizumi's shoulder, "You are welcome, Iwa-chan."

Iwaizumi swatted at his friend, ignoring Oikawa's huff at not getting an actual thank you. He'd thank him later. Maybe. Once his ego deflated a little. For now he was busy firing off his own message.

 _[To: Yachi Hitoka]  
Same. Talk more after school?_

The final lunch bell rang and their teacher was just coming in and getting settled at the front of the classroom when Iwaizumi's pocket buzzed. Carefully sliding his phone back out, he checked it under his desk and grinned.

 _[From: Yachi Hitoka]  
Sure _ -✲ﾟ｡.(✿╹◡╹)ﾉ .｡₀:*ﾟ✲ﾟ*:₀｡

For the rest of the afternoon, Iwaizumi was an attentive student, taking notes, raising his hand to answer questions, and leaving his phone in his pocket when it belonged during school hours. But every now and then, he'd catch himself smiling and have to hide his mouth behind his hand. He could _not_ tell Oikawa about this. He'd have to find some roundabout way to thank his idiot friend. Maybe he'd buy him milk bread tomorrow.


End file.
